MARKET RESEARCH: THE RISK OF INACCURATE TRANSLATION ON OUTCOME OF MARKET RESEARCH PROJECTS

Transcription

1 MARKET RESEARCH: THE RISK OF INACCURATE TRANSLATION ON OUTCOME OF MARKET RESEARCH PROJECTS ROBIN S. AYOUB VP Business Development CLS Lexi-tech, a Lionbridge Company July 27 th 2015

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction... 3 Importance of Market Research... 3 Types of Market Research... 3 Why Companies Need To Perform Market Research... 4 The Shifting Demographics... 5 Importance of Demographics to Marketing... 6 Market Research and Cultural Sensitivity... 7 Cultural Sensitivity in Research Materials and Translating Existing Materials... 8 Why Should You Outsource Market Research Translation Summary... 11

3 INTRODUCTION As the economy continues to globalize at previously unprecedented rates, it has become crucial for organizations of all sizes to market their products and services in a way that caters to both the local as well as the foreign markets. Besides the global expansion of such companies, the changing demographics of the countries in which these companies are located are also a major factor. The US and Canada, for instance, are nations with a diverse demography, with people of all cultures and beliefs residing across the country. This requires corporations to conduct extensive market research keeping in mind the variations in demography. While many executives believe this is an easy task; according to them, all they have to do is to hire a translation company to help them translate their research material, and the job would be done. Right? Wrong. When there are variations in demographics, particularly ethnicity, there is much more that needs to be taken care of besides just translating the material. It becomes imperative to choose a translation company that not only translates the materials accurately, but also has a trusted quality assurance process to make sure that the translated material accurately represents the research material, regardless of which language it is translated to. In addition to that, translation firms should also be able to highlight cultural issues surrounding a particular target audience, which may involve identifying and removing any questions from the surveys that might be deemed inappropriate or offensive for the community. Gone are the days when companies could simply formulate only one type of marketing materials and have them sent out across the country. With today s broad range of audience, great care is required to make sure no offensive gestures are made that would otherwise compromise the company s reputation. IMPORTANCE OF MARKET RESEARCH Market research is a process by which critical data is collected to determine whether a certain product or service will fulfill the needs of a company s customers. By conducting effective market research, a company gains valuable insight about their competitors, demographics, economic shifts, latest market trends, and the behavior of their customers. Types of Market Research Market research can be divided into two distinct types: primary and secondary. 1. Primary Research This type of research is used to monitor the effectiveness of a company s sales, its existing business practices, quality of the services as well as the tools used for communication purposes. In addition to that, it also helps to effectively assess market competition through evaluation of business plans of the competitors. Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 3

4 2. Secondary Research This type of research is used to collect already-published data in order to develop a company database that helps in deriving a situation analysis. It formulates strategies for thorough benchmarking and also helps to determine those market segments that the company should be targeting. WHY COMPANIES NEED TO PERFORM MARKET RESEARCH Marketing research has to be carried out on a continual basis. If your company wants to stay updated with the latest market trends and aims to gain a competitive edge in its operating industry, having an understanding of market research and why it needs to be done is crucial. Some of the reasons why companies need to conduct market research: It identifies problem areas in your business It highlights needs of existing consumers and why they choose (or do not choose) your products or services over competitors It identifies new business opportunities as well as changing market trends It helps companies discover potential customers along with their specific needs It helps a company set targets that are achievable for business sales, growth and for latest product developments It assists in making well-informed business decisions together with effective strategies It needs to be understood that the market research process has become more complex due to the shifting demographics where people of varying ethnicity needs to be targeted, keeping in mind their cultures and behaviors. Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 4

5 THE SHIFTING DEMOGRAPHICS The estimates regarding the population of United States at the middle of the twenty-first century vary significantly. From the United Nation s 404 million to the United States Census Bureau s figures ranging between 422 and 458 million. The makeup of this population is diverse, with the same being true for Canada because of both nations continued inflow of immigrants of varying cultures and beliefs. The demographics are changing, and those marketers who ignore this shift are the ones who will be facing serious problems in the future. According to a report released by the US Census Bureau in 2011, minorities made up around 50 percent of the US population. The report defines minority as someone who is not Hispanic and single-race Caucasian. This percentage was up from 2010 s 49.5 percent. These demographic trends have made it necessary for marketers to recast their strategies and products to adjust to the demographic changes. Smarter companies have, for long, observed and followed such shifts and have acted on them. Unfortunately, the Census data has insufficiently highlighted the importance of designing products for and marketing to different ethnicities by producing promotional materials in different languages. A marketing professor at Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Qiaowei Shen, agrees with the fact that the shift in demographic trends could imply new opportunities for businesses while requiring them to implement different segmentation strategies: Companies have to be alert to the new trends, understand the needs and traits of different demographic groups and figure out the best way to reach the target segments, she says. For example, the most effective advertising messages and media channels could be very different for Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 5

6 minorities, and companies have to tailor their marketing strategies accordingly, from marketing campaigns to probably the product itself. Barbara Kahn, another marketing professor at Wharton, states that the demographic shift is not new; in fact, it is a continuation of a prevailing trend that has been taking place for quite some time now. She focuses her research on consumer choice and customer relationship management. IMPORTANCE OF DEMOGRAPHICS TO MARKETING Businesses need demographics to correctly identify and target the ideal consumer for their products and services. Demographics are also necessary for developing marketing strategies, including advertisements, product packaging, business location and product/service pricing. A business that is in the process of adjusting its marketing plan to the shifting demographics of a country will find it useful to learn that Hispanic customers spend considerably more on baby items, whereas African-American consumers buy greater number of fragrances as well as ingredients for cooking at home. On the other hand, Asian-Americans are more likely to eat out. Since companies cannot aim their marketing at each individual customer, demographics seem to be the most effective method of targeting their marketing efforts. Eventually, everything boils down to market research: companies need to conduct market research in lieu with the shifting demographics to ensure their research methods and materials are designed to (and correctly translated) for each group of individuals. Cultural aspects must also be taken into account when translating and preparing research materials. Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 6

7 MARKET RESEARCH AND CULTURAL SENSITIVITY The culture of an area that is being researched has a great impact on how marketing executives actually carry out the research, what they ask, and the length or the type of information they receive. The ability and willingness of the respondents to spare time on the research process to provide free-form response is greatly influenced by numerous factors, including market conditions, education, the segments being studied, and culture. Individual and cultural preferences vary significantly from one country to another, and they have a considerable impact on the techniques used for research. While businesses in the US and Canada often use research techniques that gathers numbers which can be sorted and manipulated, organizations in other nations of the world may use different approaches. For instance, in Japan, researchers may gather data about inventory levels, shipments and retail sales, combining them with soft data from conversations, interviews and personal experience from site visits. Traditional tools (qualitative) comprise of focus groups, observation and interviews, and are used globally. However, researchers may evaluate the results quite differently. Interviews are best when a particular company needs detailed answers to precise questions. Focus groups, on the other hand, are quite effective at helping researchers gain knowledge of perceptions, attitudes, and opinions. Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 7

8 Technology also helps my making it possible for the focus groups in varying regions to interact with one another. When these groups are used on a global level, it helps to gain an understanding of some cultures that may not be comfortable with open and frank discussions discussions that may not be an issue for certain segment of people might not be acceptable for the other. In some cultures, disagreeing with others (which is a hallmark of focus group discussions), is considered to be rude. In addition, some topics are also taboo. Observation is useful for those areas where the company is completely unfamiliar as it helps to provide them an opportunity to quietly observe and learn. Observation is also a way of refining products certain regions. For instance, Toyota, before starting its operations in the US, dispatched a team of designers and engineers to the United States where they quietly observed as women got in and out of their cars, and operated them. Some of the key observations included how women with longer fingernails had issues opening car doors, leading to some design changes. Similarly, being aware of any prevailing regional regulations is also important. For instance, marketers and researchers must schedule any retail store checks with the store managers well in advance in Europe. When it comes to quantitative tools, surveys are performed through questionnaires that can be conducted in person, over telephone, or by mail. While they can gather useful data, the level of insight they provide depends on various factors in the market, such as the availability of telephones/telephone numbers, landlines versus cell phones, the quality of postal system, and whether or not the target demographic can be reached. All of these factors vary from one area to another. However, such factors are typically non-issues when US and Canadian audiences are concerned. The whole point of highlighting the global methods and variations is that almost the same concepts are now applicable to the US and Canada because of the diverse demographics of these countries. Therefore, marketers and researchers now have to carefully develop research materials for specific areas even in these countries. CULTURAL SENSITIVITY IN RESEARCH MATERIALS AND TRANSLATING EXISTING MATERIALS Cultural issues need to be addressed when developing or translating research materials into respective languages of the target audience. If, for instance, a company wants to target Asians living in, say, China Town, care has to be taken to ensure that quality translation is done of their existing research materials. Additionally, any questions that may not be appropriate for the target audience should be removed. A translation company has more to do than just translate the content. It should have a quality assurance process that makes sure that the survey questionnaires are accurately translated and any cultural issues have been identified. Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 8

9 The importance of carefully translating the material cannot be overemphasized. For instance, it once happened that a researcher used a phrase group discussion in a survey aimed for Russian executives. It was found later on that the translation of this phrase turned out to be political indoctrination session. It greatly helps to ensure that a translation-retranslation approach is followed. This is when a researcher writes down a question, gets it translated, and then has another translator who translates it back to the original language. This technique helps to identify and avoid potential miscommunication, which can lead to great embarrassment for the company, at the very least. Market research translation involves accurately translating the following: Offline and online questionnaires Questionnaire responses Stimulus reports (concept boards, show cards, product descriptions) Research Reports (MS PowerPoint and MS Word) Transcripts of group discussions Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 9

10 WHY SHOULD YOU OUTSOURCE MARKET RESEARCH TRANSLATION As discussed in this whitepaper, companies today need to target specific segments of the population in their respective languages while adhering to that segment s cultural beliefs. Any slight errors can lead to a whole community feeling abused or hurt. As a result, this could have a significant impact on the bottom line of a company, stunting its growth and causing it to lose a significant portion of its potential consumer base to its competitors. It needs to be mentioned that if you do not take time to adapt to the shifting demographics, your competitors will utilize this opportunity to gain an edge over you. By outsourcing your market research translation to a reliable translation company, you can benefit in the following ways: You will get accurate and spot-on translation procedures for each of your target segments You will gain an advantage by breaking the language barrier between you and your audience, which will help you to gain an accurate cultural insight of the local markets being targeted You will get access to quality translation services provided by qualified individuals with a proven background in market research You will gain advanced insight into the cross-cultural issues, helping to boost your brand image Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 10

11 SUMMARY The changing demographics of the US and Canada have made it crucial for businesses to adapt new marketing research techniques in order to learn more about the different categories of consumers, with one group having stark cultural differences and languages from another. No longer is it possible for companies to sweep the markets with the same form of research materials as was done previously. Care should be taken to make sure the questions being posed to the audience are in no way offensive to them or to their cultural beliefs. In addition to that, the language barrier between English-based companies and their non-english speaking audience also has to be eliminated. This has led to the translation of research material in the native languages of each of the audience groups. As the demographic shift continues, there is no denying the fact that more and more companies will realize the importance of translation services and will turn to utilize them in order to win over a greater consumer base, comprising of individuals from all cultures and beliefs. By asking each demographic segment questions in their own languages, you will be in a better position to understand their needs and wants and expectations, allowing you to develop products and services that actually solve their problems and ultimately fuel your growth by increasing your bottom line. Author s bio: Robin Ayoub was appointed Vice President of Business Development, Sales and Marketing with CLS Lexi-tech in Reporting to the President, he was recruited to expand CLS Lexi-tech s reach into the global market and increase top line revenues. Robin restructured the sales team and developed a 5 year plan which would enabled the company to gain major clients in Pharmaceutical, Banking, Automotive, High Tech and Aerospace and see CLS Lexi-tech s revenues double from 10 million to 20 million dollars. Prior to his transition to CLS Lexi-tech, Robin was Director of International Business Development & Sales for Innovatia Inc. He has also held the position of Director of International Business Development and Sales with Aliant Inc. and Senior Accounts Executive at Empowered Networks in Ottawa, ON. Robin Holds a Bachelor Degree in Computer Science, and a Master Degree in Informatics Author: Robin S. Ayoub July 27 th 2015 Page 11